Method and apparatus for scheduling multiple uplink grants of different types

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the present disclosure provide for scheduling multiple types of uplink grants for a single user equipment to support different types of service with different traffic patterns and quality of service (QoS) requirements. In some aspects of the disclosure, the user equipment may be configured with uplink grants for different types of semi-persistent scheduling, along with a dynamic uplink grant. In some examples, the different types of semi-persistent scheduling may include dedicated semi-persistent scheduling and contention-based semi-persistent scheduling.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims priority to and the benefit of ProvisionalPatent Application No. 62/404,165 filed in the U.S. Patent and TrademarkOffice on Oct. 4, 2016, the entire content of which is incorporatedherein by reference as if fully set forth below in its entirety and forall applicable purposes

TECHNICAL FIELD

The technology discussed below relates generally to wirelesscommunication systems, and more particularly, to scheduling resources onthe uplink. Embodiments can provide and enable techniques to schedulemultiple uplink grants of different types in next generation (5G)wireless networks.

INTRODUCTION

Wireless transmissions between a base station and one or more userequipment (UE) within a cell are generally scheduled in each subframe orslot. For example, the base station may assign resources (e.g.,time-frequency resources) for downlink transmissions to one or more UEsand grant the use of resources for uplink transmissions from one or moreUEs. The downlink assignments and uplink grants may be provided to theUEs via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

A common form of scheduling utilized in wireless networks is dynamicscheduling, where resources are scheduled when data is available to betransmitted. For example, in the downlink (e.g., from the base stationto the UE), resources may be assigned when the base station has data tosend to the UE. In the uplink (e.g., from the UE to the base station),the UE may transmit a scheduling request to the base station when dataarrives in the UE's uplink buffer.

While dynamic scheduling works well for bursty, infrequent, or bandwidthconsuming transmissions, dynamic scheduling is less ideal forlow-latency or periodic transmissions due to the delay and overheadrequirements involved with dynamic scheduling. Therefore, another typeof scheduling, known as semi-persistent scheduling, has been developedto reduce scheduling overhead and to support low-latency transmissions.With semi-persistent scheduling (SPS), the UE is pre-configured by thebase station with a periodicity of downlink assignments or uplinkgrants. Once configured, the UE may receive downlink transmissions atregular intervals or transmit uplink transmissions at regular intervalsaccording to the periodicity. During SPS, the resource assignments andmodulation and coding scheme may remain fixed for each transmission.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF SOME EXAMPLES

The following presents a simplified summary of one or more aspects ofthe present disclosure, in order to provide a basic understanding ofsuch aspects. This summary is not an extensive overview of allcontemplated features of the disclosure, and is intended neither toidentify key or critical elements of all aspects of the disclosure norto delineate the scope of any or all aspects of the disclosure. Its solepurpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of thedisclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detaileddescription that is presented later.

Various aspects of the present disclosure relate to scheduling differenttypes of uplink grants for a user equipment (scheduled entity) in orderto support different types of service with different traffic patternsand quality of service (QoS) requirements. In some aspects of thedisclosure, the scheduled entity may be configured with uplink grantsfor different types of semi-persistent scheduling, along with a dynamicuplink grant. In some examples, the different types of semi-persistentscheduling may include dedicated semi-persistent scheduling andcontention-based semi-persistent scheduling.

In one aspect of the disclosure, a method of wireless communication in awireless communication network for a scheduling entity to communicatewith a set of one or more scheduled entities is disclosed. The methodincludes allocating a first set of resource elements for use by ascheduled entity of the set of one or more scheduled entities inaccordance with a first uplink grant of a first type of semi-persistentscheduling, allocating a second set of resource elements for use by thescheduled entity in accordance with a second uplink grant of a secondtype of semi-persistent scheduling, and allocating a third set ofresource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with athird uplink grant, where the third uplink grant is a dynamic schedulinggrant. The method further includes transmitting scheduling informationcorresponding to the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant and thethird uplink grant to the scheduled entity such that the scheduledentity is simultaneously configured with the first uplink grant, thesecond uplink grant, and the third uplink grant.

Another aspect of the disclosure provides a scheduling entity in awireless communication network. The scheduling entity includes aprocessor, a transceiver communicatively coupled to the processor and amemory communicatively coupled to the processor. The processor isconfigured to allocate a first set of resource elements for use by ascheduled entity of the set of one or more scheduled entities inaccordance with a first uplink grant of a first type of semi-persistentscheduling, allocate a second set of resource elements for use by thescheduled entity in accordance with a second uplink grant of a secondtype of semi-persistent scheduling, and allocate a third set of resourceelements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with a thirduplink grant, where the third uplink grant is a dynamic schedulinggrant. The processor is further configured to transmit via thetransceiver scheduling information corresponding to the first uplinkgrant, the second uplink grant and the third uplink grant to thescheduled entity such that the scheduled entity is simultaneouslyconfigured with the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant, and thethird uplink grant.

Examples of additional aspects of the disclosure follow. In some aspectsof the disclosure, the first type of semi-persistent scheduling includesdedicated semi-persistent scheduling and the second type ofsemi-persistent scheduling includes contention-based semi-persistentscheduling. In some aspects of the disclosure, the method furtherincludes configuring the scheduled entity with first semi-persistentscheduling configuration parameters for the first uplink grant,activating the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for thescheduled entity to enable the scheduled entity to utilize the firstuplink grant based on the first semi-persistent scheduling configurationparameters, configuring the scheduled entity with second semi-persistentscheduling configuration parameters for the second uplink grant, andactivating the second type of semi-persistent scheduling to enable thescheduled entity to utilize the second uplink grant based on the secondsemi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters. In some examples,the first type of semi-persistent scheduling is activated substantiallysimultaneously to activating the second type of semi-persistentscheduling. In other examples, the first and second types ofsemi-persistent scheduling are activated at different times.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the first semi-persistent schedulingconfiguration parameters include at least a first semi-persistentscheduling identifier and a first periodicity of the first uplink grant,the second semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters includeat least a second semi-persistent scheduling identifier and a secondperiodicity of the second uplink grant, and the scheduling informationincludes the first semi-persistent scheduling configuration parametersand the second semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the method further includes releasingthe first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity todeactivate the first uplink grant, and releasing the second type ofsemi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity to deactivate thesecond uplink grant. In some examples, the first type of semi-persistentscheduling is released substantially simultaneously to the second typeof semi-persistent scheduling. In other examples, the first and secondtypes of semi-persistent scheduling are leased at different times.

In some aspects of the disclosure, at least one of the first uplinkgrant or the second uplink grant is configured based on a traffic typeof user data traffic to be sent by the scheduling entity. In someaspects of the disclosure, at least one of the first uplink grant or thesecond uplink grant is configured based on a quality of service to beprovided to the scheduled entity.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the first set of resource elementsare orthogonal to the second set of resource elements. In some aspectsof the disclosure, the first and second sets of resource elements atleast partially overlap in at least one of time or frequency. In someaspects of the disclosure, the scheduling information for each of thefirst, second, and third uplink grants are transmitted within separatedownlink channel information of a physical downlink control channel

In some aspects of the disclosure, the scheduling entity is a basestation and the scheduled entity is a user equipment. In some aspects ofthe disclosure, the method further includes receiving user data trafficfrom the user equipment on at least one of the first set of resourceelements, the second set of resource elements or the third set ofresource elements.

Another aspect of the disclosure provides a method for a scheduledentity to communicate with a scheduling entity. The method includesreceiving scheduling information corresponding to a first uplink grant,a second uplink grant, and a third uplink grant to simultaneouslyconfigure the scheduled entity with the first uplink grant, the seconduplink grant, and the third uplink grant. The first uplink grantincludes a first type of semi-persistent scheduling, the second uplinkgrant includes a second type of semi-persistent scheduling, and thethird uplink grant includes a dynamic scheduling grant. The methodfurther includes identifying user data traffic to be transmitted fromthe scheduled entity to the scheduling entity, selecting one or moreselected uplink grants from the first uplink grant, the second uplink,or the third uplink grant for the user data traffic, and transmittingthe user data traffic from the scheduled entity to the scheduling entityutilizing the one or more selected uplink grants.

Another aspect of the disclosure provides a scheduled entity in awireless communication network. The scheduled entity includes aprocessor, a transceiver communicatively coupled to the processor, and amemory communicatively coupled to the processor. The processor isconfigured to receive scheduling information corresponding to a firstuplink grant, a second uplink grant, and a third uplink grant tosimultaneously configure the scheduled entity with the first uplinkgrant, the second uplink grant, and the third uplink grant. The firstuplink grant includes a first type of semi-persistent scheduling, thesecond uplink grant includes a second type of semi-persistentscheduling, and the third uplink grant includes a dynamic schedulinggrant. The processor is further configured to identify user data trafficto be transmitted from the scheduled entity to the scheduling entity,select one or more selected uplink grants from the first uplink grant,the second uplink, or the third uplink grant for the user data traffic,and transmit the user data traffic from the scheduled entity to thescheduling entity utilizing the one or more selected uplink grants.

Examples of additional aspects of the disclosure follow. In some aspectsof the disclosure, the first type of semi-persistent scheduling includesdedicated semi-persistent scheduling and the second type ofsemi-persistent scheduling includes contention-based semi-persistentscheduling. In some aspects of the disclosure, a respective uplinktransmit power may be selected for each of the one or more selecteduplink grants.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the one or more selected uplinkgrants may be selected based on a traffic type of the user data traffic.In some examples, the first uplink grant may be selected as one of theone or more selected uplink grants when the user data traffic includesperiodic traffic, the second uplink grant may be selected as one of theone or more selected uplink grants when the user data traffic includeslow-latency traffic or small packet-sized traffic, and the third uplinkgrant may be selected as one of the one or more selected uplink grantswhen the user data traffic includes large packet-sized traffic.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the first uplink grant includes afirst set of resource elements, the second uplink grant includes asecond set of resource elements, and the third uplink grant includes athird set of resource elements. In some examples, the third uplink grantmay be selected as one of the one or more selected uplink grants whenthe third set of resource elements overlaps at least one of the firstset of resource elements or the second set of resource elements. In someexamples, the first uplink grant may be selected as one of the one ormore selected uplink grants when the first set of resource elementsoverlaps the second set of resource elements and the first set ofresource elements does not overlap the third set of resource elements.In some examples, the second uplink grant may be selected as one of theone or more selected uplink grants when the second set of resourceelements does not overlap the first set of resource elements or thethird set of resource elements.

These and other aspects of the invention will become more fullyunderstood upon a review of the detailed description, which follows.Other aspects, features, and embodiments of the present invention willbecome apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, upon reviewingthe following description of specific, exemplary embodiments of thepresent invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures. Whilefeatures of the present invention may be discussed relative to certainembodiments and figures below, all embodiments of the present inventioncan include one or more of the advantageous features discussed herein.In other words, while one or more embodiments may be discussed as havingcertain advantageous features, one or more of such features may also beused in accordance with the various embodiments of the inventiondiscussed herein. In similar fashion, while exemplary embodiments may bediscussed below as device, system, or method embodiments it should beunderstood that such exemplary embodiments can be implemented in variousdevices, systems, and methods.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of an accessnetwork.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a scheduling entitycommunicating with one or more scheduled entities according to someaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a resource structure foruse in an access network according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a downlink (DL)-centricslot according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an uplink (UL)-centricslot according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a signaling diagram illustrating exemplary signaling fordynamic scheduling according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a signaling diagram illustrating exemplary signaling forsemi-persistent scheduling according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareimplementation for a scheduling entity employing a processing systemaccording to some aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareimplementation for a scheduled entity employing a processing systemaccording to some aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a physical downlinkcontrol channel (PDCCH) carrying downlink control information accordingto some aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of a method of simultaneously schedulingmultiple uplink grants for a scheduled entity in a wirelesscommunication network according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 12 is a flow chart of another method of simultaneously schedulingmultiple uplink grants for a scheduled entity in a wirelesscommunication network according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 13 is a flow chart of a method of selecting between multiple uplinkgrants simultaneously configured for a scheduling entity in a wirelesscommunication network according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart of another method of selecting between multipleuplink grants simultaneously configured for a scheduling entity in awireless communication network according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 15 is a flow chart is a flow chart of another method of selectingbetween multiple uplink grants simultaneously configured for ascheduling entity in a wireless communication network according to someaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart of a method of utilizing different uplinktransmit powers for different uplink grants simultaneously configuredfor a scheduling entity in a wireless communication network according tosome aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appendeddrawings is intended as a description of various configurations and isnot intended to represent the only configurations in which the conceptsdescribed herein may be practiced. The detailed description includesspecific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understandingof various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled inthe art that these concepts may be practiced without these specificdetails. In some instances, well known structures and components areshown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring such concepts.

The various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may beimplemented across a broad variety of telecommunication systems, networkarchitectures, and communication standards. Referring now to FIG. 1, asan illustrative example without limitation, a simplified schematicillustration of an access network 100 is provided. The access network100 may be a legacy access network or a next generation access network.In addition, one or more nodes in the access network 100 may be nextgeneration nodes or legacy nodes.

As used herein, the term legacy access network refers to an accessnetwork employing a third generation (3G) wireless communicationtechnology based on a set of standards that complies with theInternational Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000) specificationsor a fourth generation (4G) wireless communication technology based on aset of standards that comply with the International MobileTelecommunications Advanced (ITU-Advanced) specification. For example,some the standards promulgated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project(3GPP) and the 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) may complywith IMT-2000 and/or ITU-Advanced. Examples of such legacy standardsdefined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) include, butare not limited to, Long-Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, EvolvedPacket System (EPS), and Universal Mobile Telecommunication System(UMTS). Additional examples of various radio access technologies basedon one or more of the above-listed 3GPP standards include, but are notlimited to, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), Evolved UniversalTerrestrial Radio Access (eUTRA), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS)and Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE). Examples of suchlegacy standards defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2(3GPP2) include, but are not limited to, CDMA2000 and Ultra MobileBroadband (UMB). Other examples of standards employing 3G/4G wirelesscommunication technology include the IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX) standard andother suitable standards.

As further used herein, the term next generation access network refersto an access network employing a fifth generation (5G) wirelesscommunication technology based on a set of standards that complies withthe guidelines set forth in the 5G White Paper published by the NextGeneration Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance on Feb. 17, 2015. Forexample, standards that may be defined by the 3GPP followingLTE-Advanced or by the 3GPP2 following CDMA2000 may comply with the NGMNAlliance 5G White Paper.

The geographic region covered by the access network 100 may be dividedinto a number of cellular regions (cells) that can be uniquelyidentified by a user equipment (UE) based on an identificationbroadcasted over a geographical from one access point or base station.FIG. 1 illustrates macrocells 102, 104, and 106, and a small cell 108,each of which may include one or more sectors. A sector is a sub-area ofa cell. All sectors within one cell are served by the same base station.A radio link within a sector can be identified by a single logicalidentification belonging to that sector. In a cell that is divided intosectors, the multiple sectors within a cell can be formed by groups ofantennas with each antenna responsible for communication with UEs in aportion of the cell.

In general, a base station (BS) serves each cell. Broadly, a basestation is a network element in a radio access network responsible forradio transmission and reception in one or more cells to or from a UE. ABS may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a basetransceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, atransceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set(ESS), an access point (AP), a Node B (NB), an eNode B (eNB), a gNodeB(gNB) or some other suitable terminology.

In FIG. 1, two high-power base stations 110 and 112 are shown in cells102 and 104; and a third high-power base station 114 is showncontrolling a remote radio head (RRH) 116 in cell 106. That is, a basestation can have an integrated antenna or can be connected to an antennaor RRH by feeder cables. In the illustrated example, the cells 102, 104,and 106 may be referred to as macrocells, as the high-power basestations 110, 112, and 114 support cells having a large size. Further, alow-power base station 118 is shown in the small cell 108 (e.g., amicrocell, picocell, femtocell, home base station, home Node B, homeeNode B, etc.) which may overlap with one or more macrocells. In thisexample, the cell 108 may be referred to as a small cell, as thelow-power base station 118 supports a cell having a relatively smallsize. Cell sizing can be done according to system design as well ascomponent constraints. It is to be understood that the access network100 may include any number of wireless base stations and cells. Further,a relay node may be deployed to extend the size or coverage area of agiven cell. The base stations 110, 112, 114, 118 provide wireless accesspoints to a core network for any number of mobile apparatuses.

FIG. 1 further includes a quadcopter or drone 120, which may beconfigured to function as a base station. That is, in some examples, acell may not necessarily be stationary, and the geographic area of thecell may move according to the location of a mobile base station such asthe quadcopter 120.

In general, base stations may include a backhaul interface forcommunication with a backhaul portion of the network. The backhaul mayprovide a link between a base station and a core network, and in someexamples, the backhaul may provide interconnection between therespective base stations. The core network is a part of a wirelesscommunication system that is generally independent of the radio accesstechnology used in the radio access network. Various types of backhaulinterfaces may be employed, such as a direct physical connection, avirtual network, or the like using any suitable transport network. Somebase stations may be configured as integrated access and backhaul (IAB)nodes, where the wireless spectrum may be used both for access links(i.e., wireless links with UEs), and for backhaul links. This scheme issometimes referred to as wireless self-backhauling. By using wirelessself-backhauling, rather than requiring each new base station deploymentto be outfitted with its own hard-wired backhaul connection, thewireless spectrum utilized for communication between the base stationand UE may be leveraged for backhaul communication, enabling fast andeasy deployment of highly dense small cell networks.

The access network 100 is illustrated supporting wireless communicationfor multiple mobile apparatuses. A mobile apparatus is commonly referredto as user equipment (UE) in standards and specifications promulgated bythe 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), but may also be referredto by those skilled in the art as a mobile station (MS), a subscriberstation, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remoteunit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communicationsdevice, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal(AT), a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, ahandset, a terminal, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or someother suitable terminology. A UE may be an apparatus that provides auser with access to network services.

Within the present document, a “mobile” apparatus need not necessarilyhave a capability to move, and may be stationary. The term mobileapparatus or mobile device broadly refers to a diverse array of devicesand technologies. For example, some non-limiting examples of a mobileapparatus include a mobile, a cellular (cell) phone, a smart phone, asession initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal computer(PC), a notebook, a netbook, a smartbook, a tablet, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), and a broad array of embedded systems, e.g.,corresponding to an “Internet of things” (IoT). A mobile apparatus mayadditionally be an automotive or other transportation vehicle, a remotesensor or actuator, a robot or robotics device, a satellite radio, aglobal positioning system (GPS) device, an object tracking device, adrone, a multi-copter, a quad-copter, a remote control device, aconsumer and/or wearable device, such as eyewear, a wearable camera, avirtual reality device, a smart watch, a health or fitness tracker, adigital audio player (e.g., MP3 player), a camera, a game console, etc.A mobile apparatus may additionally be a digital home or smart homedevice such as a home audio, video, and/or multimedia device, anappliance, a vending machine, intelligent lighting, a home securitysystem, a smart meter, etc. A mobile apparatus may additionally be asmart energy device, a security device, a solar panel or solar array, amunicipal infrastructure device controlling electric power (e.g., asmart grid), lighting, water, etc.; an industrial automation andenterprise device; a logistics controller; agricultural equipment;military defense equipment, vehicles, aircraft, ships, and weaponry,etc. Still further, a mobile apparatus may provide for connectedmedicine or telemedicine support, i.e., health care at a distance.Telehealth devices may include telehealth monitoring devices andtelehealth administration devices, whose communication may be givenpreferential treatment or prioritized access over other types ofinformation, e.g., in terms of prioritized access for transport ofcritical service user data traffic, and/or relevant QoS for transport ofcritical service user data traffic.

Within the access network 100, the cells may include UEs that may be incommunication with one or more sectors of each cell. For example, UEs122 and 124 may be in communication with base station 110; UEs 126 and128 may be in communication with base station 112; UEs 130 and 132 maybe in communication with base station 114 by way of RRH 116; UE 134 maybe in communication with low-power base station 118; and UE 136 may bein communication with mobile base station 120. Here, each base station110, 112, 114, 118, and 120 may be configured to provide an access pointto a core network (not shown) for all the UEs in the respective cells.

In another example, a mobile network node (e.g., quadcopter 120) may beconfigured to function as a UE. For example, the quadcopter 120 mayoperate within cell 102 by communicating with base station 110. In someaspects of the disclosure, two or more UE (e.g., UEs 126 and 128) maycommunicate with each other using peer to peer (P2P) or sidelink signals127 without relaying that communication through a base station (e.g.,base station 112).

Unicast or broadcast transmissions of control information and/or trafficinformation (e.g., user data traffic) from a base station (e.g., basestation 110) to one or more UEs (e.g., UEs 122 and 124) may be referredto as downlink (DL) transmission, while transmissions of controlinformation and/or traffic information originating at a UE (e.g., UE122) may be referred to as uplink (UL) transmissions. In addition, theuplink and/or downlink control information and/or traffic informationmay be time-divided into frames, subframes, slots, and/or symbols. Asused herein, a symbol may refer to a unit of time that, in an orthogonalfrequency division multiplexed (OFDM) waveform, carries one resourceelement (RE) per sub-carrier. A slot may carry 7 or 14 OFDM symbols. Asubframe may refer to a duration of 1 ms. Multiple subframes or slotsmay be grouped together to form a single frame or radio frame. Ofcourse, these definitions are not required, and any suitable scheme fororganizing waveforms may be utilized, and various time divisions of thewaveform may have any suitable duration.

The air interface in the access network 100 may utilize one or moremultiplexing and multiple access algorithms to enable simultaneouscommunication of the various devices. For example, multiple access foruplink (UL) or reverse link transmissions from UEs 122 and 124 to basestation 110 may be provided utilizing time division multiple access(TDMA), code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency divisionmultiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access(OFDMA), sparse code multiple access (SCMA), single-carrier frequencydivision multiple access (SC-FDMA), resource spread multiple access(RSMA), or other suitable multiple access schemes. Further, multiplexingdownlink (DL) or forward link transmissions from the base station 110 toUEs 122 and 124 may be provided utilizing time division multiplexing(TDM), code division multiplexing (CDM), frequency division multiplexing(FDM), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), sparse codemultiplexing (SCM), single-carrier frequency division multiplexing(SC-FDM) or other suitable multiplexing schemes.

Further, the air interface in the access network 100 may utilize one ormore duplexing algorithms Duplex refers to a point-to-pointcommunication link where both endpoints can communicate with one anotherin both directions. Full duplex means both endpoints can simultaneouslycommunicate with one another. Half duplex means only one endpoint cansend information to the other at a time. In a wireless link, a fullduplex channel generally relies on physical isolation of a transmitterand receiver, and suitable interference cancellation technologies. Fullduplex emulation is frequently implemented for wireless links byutilizing frequency division duplex (FDD) or time division duplex (TDD).In FDD, transmissions in different directions operate at differentcarrier frequencies. In TDD, transmissions in different directions on agiven channel are separated from one another using time divisionmultiplexing. That is, at some times the channel is dedicated fortransmissions in one direction, while at other times the channel isdedicated for transmissions in the other direction, where the directionmay change very rapidly, e.g., several times per subframe.

In the radio access network 100, the ability for a UE to communicatewhile moving, independent of their location, is referred to as mobility.The various physical channels between the UE and the radio accessnetwork are generally set up, maintained, and released under the controlof a mobility management entity (MME). In various aspects of thedisclosure, an access network 100 may utilize DL-based mobility orUL-based mobility to enable mobility and handovers (i.e., the transferof a UE's connection from one radio channel to another). In a networkconfigured for DL-based mobility, during a call with a schedulingentity, or at any other time, a UE may monitor various parameters of thesignal from its serving cell as well as various parameters ofneighboring cells. Depending on the quality of these parameters, the UEmay maintain communication with one or more of the neighboring cells.During this time, if the UE moves from one cell to another, or if signalquality from a neighboring cell exceeds that from the serving cell for agiven amount of time, the UE may undertake a handoff or handover fromthe serving cell to the neighboring (target) cell. For example, UE 124may move from the geographic area corresponding to its serving cell 102to the geographic area corresponding to a neighbor cell 106. When thesignal strength or quality from the neighbor cell 106 exceeds that ofits serving cell 102 for a given amount of time, the UE 124 may transmita reporting message to its serving base station 110 indicating thiscondition. In response, the UE 124 may receive a handover command, andthe UE may undergo a handover to the cell 106.

In a network configured for UL-based mobility, UL reference signals fromeach UE may be utilized by the network to select a serving cell for eachUE. In some examples, the base stations 110, 112, and 114/116 maybroadcast unified synchronization signals (e.g., unified PrimarySynchronization Signals (PSSs), unified Secondary SynchronizationSignals (SSSs) and unified Physical Broadcast Channels (PBCH)). The UEs122, 124, 126, 128, 130, and 132 may receive the unified synchronizationsignals, derive the carrier frequency and subframe/slot timing from thesynchronization signals, and in response to deriving timing, transmit anuplink pilot or reference signal. The uplink pilot signal transmitted bya UE (e.g., UE 124) may be concurrently received by two or more cells(e.g., base stations 110 and 114/116) within the access network 100.Each of the cells may measure a strength of the pilot signal, and theaccess network (e.g., one or more of the base stations 110 and 114/116and/or a central node within the core network) may determine a servingcell for the UE 124. As the UE 124 moves through the access network 100,the network may continue to monitor the uplink pilot signal transmittedby the UE 124. When the signal strength or quality of the pilot signalmeasured by a neighboring cell exceeds that of the signal strength orquality measured by the serving cell, the network 100 may handover theUE 124 from the serving cell to the neighboring cell, with or withoutinforming the UE 124.

Although the synchronization signal transmitted by the base stations110, 112, and 114/116 may be unified, the synchronization signal may notidentify a particular cell, but rather may identify a zone of multiplecells operating on the same frequency and/or with the same timing. Theuse of zones in 5G networks or other next generation communicationnetworks enables the uplink-based mobility framework and improves theefficiency of both the UE and the network, since the number of mobilitymessages that need to be exchanged between the UE and the network may bereduced.

In various implementations, the air interface in the access network 100may utilize licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or shared spectrum.Licensed spectrum provides for exclusive use of a portion of thespectrum, generally by virtue of a mobile network operator purchasing alicense from a government regulatory body. Unlicensed spectrum providesfor shared use of a portion of the spectrum without need for agovernment-granted license. While compliance with some technical rulesis generally still required to access unlicensed spectrum, generally,any operator or device may gain access. Shared spectrum may fall betweenlicensed and unlicensed spectrum, wherein technical rules or limitationsmay be required to access the spectrum, but the spectrum may still beshared by multiple operators and/or multiple RATs. For example, theholder of a license for a portion of licensed spectrum may providelicensed shared access (LSA) to share that spectrum with other parties,e.g., with suitable licensee-determined conditions to gain access.

In some examples, access to the air interface may be scheduled, whereina scheduling entity (e.g., a base station) allocates resources (e.g.,time-frequency resources) for communication among some or all devicesand equipment within its service area or cell. Within the presentdisclosure, as discussed further below, the scheduling entity may beresponsible for scheduling, assigning, reconfiguring, and releasingresources for one or more scheduled entities. That is, for scheduledcommunication, UEs or scheduled entities utilize resources allocated bythe scheduling entity.

Base stations are not the only entities that may function as ascheduling entity. That is, in some examples, a UE may function as ascheduling entity, scheduling resources for one or more scheduledentities (e.g., one or more other UEs). In other examples, sidelinksignals may be used between UEs without necessarily relying onscheduling or control information from a base station. For example, UE138 is illustrated communicating with UEs 140 and 142. In some examples,the UE 138 is functioning as a scheduling entity or a primary sidelinkdevice, and UEs 140 and 142 may function as a scheduled entity or anon-primary (e.g., secondary) sidelink device. In still another example,a UE may function as a scheduling entity in a device-to-device (D2D),peer-to-peer (P2P), or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) network, and/or in amesh network. In a mesh network example, UEs 140 and 142 may optionallycommunicate directly with one another in addition to communicating withthe scheduling entity 138.

Thus, in a wireless communication network with scheduled access totime-frequency resources and having a cellular configuration, a P2Pconfiguration, or a mesh configuration, a scheduling entity and one ormore scheduled entities may communicate utilizing the scheduledresources. Referring now to FIG. 2, a block diagram illustrates ascheduling entity 202 and a plurality of scheduled entities 204 (e.g.,204 a and 204 b). Here, the scheduling entity 202 may correspond to abase station 110, 112, 114, and/or 118. In additional examples, thescheduling entity 202 may correspond to a UE 138, the quadcopter 120, orany other suitable node in the radio access network 100. Similarly, invarious examples, the scheduled entity 204 may correspond to the UE 122,124, 126, 128, 130, 132, 134, 136, 138, 140, and 142, or any othersuitable node in the radio access network 100.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the scheduling entity 202 may broadcast userdata traffic 206 to one or more scheduled entities 204 (the user datatraffic may be referred to as downlink user data traffic). In accordancewith certain aspects of the present disclosure, the term downlink mayrefer to a point-to-multipoint transmission originating at thescheduling entity 202. Broadly, the scheduling entity 202 is a node ordevice responsible for scheduling user data traffic in a wirelesscommunication network, including the downlink transmissions and, in someexamples, uplink user data traffic 210 from one or more scheduledentities to the scheduling entity 202. Another way to describe thesystem may be to use the term broadcast channel multiplexing. Inaccordance with aspects of the present disclosure, the term uplink mayrefer to a point-to-point transmission originating at a scheduled entity204. Broadly, the scheduled entity 204 is a node or device that receivesscheduling control information, including but not limited to schedulinggrants, synchronization or timing information, or other controlinformation from another entity in the wireless communication networksuch as the scheduling entity 202.

The scheduling entity 202 may broadcast control information 208including one or more control channels, such as a PBCH; a PSS; a SSS; aphysical control format indicator channel (PCFICH); a physical hybridautomatic repeat request (HARQ) indicator channel (PHICH); and/or aphysical downlink control channel (PDCCH), etc., to one or morescheduled entities 204. The PHICH carries HARQ feedback transmissionssuch as an acknowledgment (ACK) or negative acknowledgment (NACK). HARQis a technique well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, whereinpacket transmissions may be checked at the receiving side for accuracy,and if confirmed, an ACK may be transmitted, whereas if not confirmed, aNACK may be transmitted. In response to a NACK, the transmitting devicemay send a HARQ retransmission, which may implement chase combining,incremental redundancy, etc.

Uplink user data traffic 210 and/or downlink user data traffic 206including one or more traffic channels, such as a physical downlinkshared channel (PDSCH) or a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) (and,in some examples, system information blocks (SIB s)), may additionallybe transmitted between the scheduling entity 202 and the scheduledentity 204. Transmissions of the control and user data trafficinformation may be organized by subdividing a carrier, in time, intosuitable slots.

Furthermore, the scheduled entities 204 may transmit uplink controlinformation 212 including one or more uplink control channels (e.g., thephysical uplink control channel (PUCCH)) to the scheduling entity 202.Uplink control information (UCI) transmitted within the PUCCH mayinclude a variety of packet types and categories, including pilots,reference signals, and information configured to enable or assist indecoding uplink traffic transmissions. In some examples, the controlinformation 212 may include a scheduling request (SR), i.e., request forthe scheduling entity 202 to schedule uplink transmissions. Here, inresponse to the SR transmitted on the control channel 212, thescheduling entity 202 may transmit downlink control information 208 thatmay schedule the slot for uplink packet transmissions.

Uplink and downlink transmissions may generally utilize a suitable errorcorrecting block code. In a typical block code, an information messageor sequence is split up into information blocks, and an encoder at thetransmitting device then mathematically adds redundancy to theinformation message. Exploitation of this redundancy in the encodedinformation message can improve the reliability of the message, enablingcorrection for any bit errors that may occur due to the noise. Someexamples of error correcting codes include Hamming codes,Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem (BCH) codes, turbo codes, low-density paritycheck (LDPC) codes, Walsh codes, and polar codes. Variousimplementations of scheduling entities 202 and scheduled entities 204may include suitable hardware and capabilities (e.g., an encoder and/ordecoder) to utilize any one or more of these error correcting codes forwireless communication.

In some examples, scheduled entities such as a first scheduled entity204 a and a second scheduled entity 204 b may utilize sidelink signalsfor direct D2D communication. Sidelink signals may include sidelink userdata traffic 214 and sidelink control 216. Sidelink control information216 may include a source transmit signal (STS), a direction selectionsignal (DSS), a destination receive signal (DRS), and a physicalsidelink HARQ indicator channel (PSHICH). The DSS/STS may provide for ascheduled entity 204 to request a duration of time to keep a sidelinkchannel available for a sidelink signal; and the DRS may provide for thescheduled entity 204 to indicate availability of the sidelink channel,e.g., for a requested duration of time. An exchange of DSS/STS and DRS(e.g., handshake) may enable different scheduled entities performingsidelink communications to negotiate the availability of the sidelinkchannel prior to communication of the sidelink user data traffic 214.The PSHICH may include HARQ acknowledgment information and/or a HARQindicator from a destination device, so that the destination mayacknowledge traffic received from a source device.

The channels or carriers illustrated in FIG. 2 are not necessarily allof the channels or carriers that may be utilized between a schedulingentity 202 and scheduled entities 204, and those of ordinary skill inthe art will recognize that other channels or carriers may be utilizedin addition to those illustrated, such as other traffic, control, andfeedback channels.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of the resource structure 300 for aradio access network, such as the RAN 100 illustrated in FIG. 1. In someexamples, this illustration may represent downlink or uplink wirelessresources as they may be allocated in an OFDM system that utilizes MIMO.

The resources in a wireless channel may be characterized according tothree dimensions: frequency, space, and time. The frequency and timedimensions of an OFDM system may be represented by a two-dimensionalgrid 302 of resource elements (REs) 304. The REs 304 are defined by theseparation of frequency resources into closely spaced narrowbandfrequency tones or sub-carriers and the separation of time resourcesinto a sequence of OFDM symbols having a given duration. In the exampleshown in FIG. 3, each RE 302 is represented by a rectangle having thedimensions of one sub-carrier (e.g., 15 kHz bandwidth) by one OFDMsymbol. Thus, each RE 302 represents a sub-carrier modulated for theOFDM symbol period by one OFDM data symbol. Each OFDM symbol may bemodulated using, for example, quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), 16quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) or 64 QAM. Further, by utilizingspatial multiplexing (e.g., with MIMO), a plurality of OFDM streams arerepresented by separate OFDM resource grids 302 spanning in the spacedimension of FIG. 3.

The REs 304 may further be grouped into resource blocks. For example, inLTE networks, a resource block includes 12 consecutive sub-carriers inthe frequency domain and, for a normal cyclic prefix in each OFDMsymbol, 7 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, or 84 resourceelements. However, it should be understood that any suitable number ofREs 304 may be grouped into a resource block.

In addition, any number of resource blocks (e.g., groups of sub-carriersand OFDM symbols) may be utilized within a subframe or slot. In theillustrated example shown in FIG. 3, the resource structure 300represents a portion of a slot 306, which may be, for example, adownlink-centric slot or an uplink-centric slot. A DL-centric slot isreferred to as a DL-centric slot because a majority (or, in someexamples, a substantial portion) of the slot includes DL data. AnUL-centric slot is referred to as a UL-centric slot because a majority(or, in some examples, a substantial portion) of the slot includes ULdata.

In a given DL-centric or UL-centric slot 306, transmission of one ormore downlink control channels may be followed by transmission of one ormore downlink or uplink traffic channels, in the time dimension. Ingeneral, the first N OFDM symbols in a DL-centric or UL-centric slottypically correspond to a downlink control region (DL burst) of the slotthat carries downlink control reference signals and downlink controlinformation, such as the Physical Control Format Indicator Channel(PCFICH), which carries the Control Format Indicator (CFI), the PhysicalHybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) Indicator Channel (PHICH), andthe Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), which carries DownlinkControl Information (DCI).

In the non-limiting example illustrated in FIG. 3, the first two symbolsinclude downlink control reference signals and downlink controlinformation, which may be the same as the control information 208 and/or216 described above. Accordingly, these symbols may be referred to asthe DL burst. Any suitable region of resources in the time, frequency,and space dimensions may be utilized as a DL burst, not necessarilylimited to the first two symbols. Moreover, a DL burst need notnecessarily be contiguous, and may be included in one, two, or anysuitable number of separate regions.

Following the DL burst, the slot 306 may include a traffic regioncarrying downlink or uplink traffic reference signals and trafficinformation, which may be the same as the user data traffic 206, 210,and/or 214 described above. In both the DL burst and traffic region ofthe illustrated slot, REs that carry reference signals (RS) areinterleaved with REs that carry data. These RSs can provide for channelestimation by a receiving device. In addition, one or more of the RSs inthe uplink or downlink may include a demodulation reference signal(DMRS), which may be used to enable coherent signal demodulation at thereceiver. In some examples, the DMRS may be transmitted from a scheduledentity to a scheduling entity at the beginning of the traffic region inan UL-centric slot to enable the scheduling entity to demodulate thesubsequently transmitted uplink user data traffic.

At the end of the traffic region, the slot 306 may include an uplink(UL) burst that carries uplink control information. For example, theuplink burst may include a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH),physical random access channel (PRACH) or other suitable uplink controlinformation. In the non-limiting example illustrated in FIG. 3, the lastsymbol in the slot includes the uplink control information, which may bethe same as the control information 212 and/or 216 described above.While the above description only refers to the front resource grid(i.e., not considering the space dimension), it is to be understood thatcontrol and traffic information for a plurality of users may bemultiplexed in space, frequency, and time.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a downlink (DL)-centricslot 400 according to some aspects of the disclosure. In the exampleshown in FIG. 4, time is illustrated along a horizontal axis, whilefrequency is illustrated along a vertical axis. The time-frequencyresources of the DL-centric slot 400 may be divided into a DL burst 402,a DL traffic region 404 and an UL burst 406.

The DL burst 402 may exist in the initial or beginning portion of theDL-centric slot. The DL burst 402 may include any suitable DLinformation in one or more channels. In some examples, the DL burst 402may include various scheduling information and/or control informationcorresponding to various portions of the DL-centric slot. In someconfigurations, the DL burst 402 may be a physical DL control channel(PDCCH), as indicated in FIG. 4. The DL-centric slot may also include aDL traffic region 404. The DL traffic region 404 may sometimes bereferred to as the payload of the DL-centric slot. The DL traffic region404 may include the communication resources utilized to communicate DLuser data traffic from the scheduling entity 202 (e.g., eNB) to thescheduled entity 204 (e.g., UE). In some configurations, the DL trafficregion 404 may include a physical DL shared channel (PDSCH).

The UL burst 406 may include any suitable UL information in one or morechannels. In some examples, the UL burst 406 may include feedbackinformation corresponding to various other portions of the DL-centricslot. For example, the UL burst 406 may include feedback informationcorresponding to the control portion 402 and/or DL traffic region 404.Non-limiting examples of feedback information may include an ACK signal,a NACK signal, a HARQ indicator, and/or various other suitable types ofinformation. The UL burst 406 may include additional or alternativeinformation, such as information pertaining to random access channel(RACH) procedures, scheduling requests (SRs) (e.g., within a PUCCH), andvarious other suitable types of information.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the end of the DL traffic region 404 may beseparated in time from the beginning of the UL burst 406. This timeseparation may sometimes be referred to as a gap, a guard period, aguard interval, and/or various other suitable terms. This separationprovides time for the switch-over from DL communication (e.g., receptionoperation by the scheduled entity 204 (e.g., UE)) to UL communication(e.g., transmission by the scheduled entity 204 (e.g., UE)). One ofordinary skill in the art will understand that the foregoing is merelyone example of a DL-centric slot and alternative structures havingsimilar features may exist without necessarily deviating from theaspects described herein.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an uplink (UL)-centric slot500 according to some aspects of the disclosure. In the example shown inFIG. 5, time is illustrated along a horizontal axis, while frequency isillustrated along a vertical axis. The time-frequency resources of theUL-centric slot 500 may be divided into a DL burst 502, an UL trafficregion 504 and an UL burst 506.

The DL burst 502 may exist in the initial or beginning portion of theUL-centric slot. The DL burst 502 in FIG. 5 may be similar to the DLburst 402 described above with reference to FIG. 4. The UL-centric slotmay also include an UL traffic region 504. The UL traffic region 504 maysometimes be referred to as the payload of the UL-centric slot. The ULtraffic region 504 may include the communication resources utilized tocommunicate UL user data traffic from the scheduled entity 204 (e.g.,UE) to the scheduling entity 202 (e.g., eNB). In some configurations,the UL traffic region 504 may be a physical UL shared channel (PUSCH).As illustrated in FIG. 5, the end of the DL burst 502 may be separatedin time from the beginning of the UL traffic region 504. This time,separation may sometimes be referred to as a gap, guard period, guardinterval, and/or various other suitable terms. This separation providestime for the switch-over from DL communication (e.g., receptionoperation by the scheduling entity 202 (e.g., UE)) to UL communication(e.g., transmission by the scheduling entity 202 (e.g., UE)).

The UL burst 506 in FIG. 5 may be similar to the UL burst 406 describedabove with reference to FIG. 4. The UL burst 506 may additionally oralternatively include information pertaining to channel qualityindicator (CQI), sounding reference signals (SRSs), and various othersuitable types of information. One of ordinary skill in the art willunderstand that the foregoing is merely one example of an UL-centricslot, and alternative structures having similar features may existwithout necessarily deviating from the aspects described herein.

Scheduling of uplink resources (e.g., resource elements/resource blocks)for use by scheduled entities to transmit control and/or trafficinformation may be performed in a dynamic manner or a semi-persistentmanner FIG. 6 is a signaling diagram 600 illustrating exemplarysignaling for dynamic scheduling according to some aspects of thepresent disclosure. When data arrives in an uplink buffer of a scheduledentity 204, at 602, the scheduled entity 204 may transmit a schedulingrequest to the scheduling entity 202 to request an uplink grant oftime-frequency resources (e.g., resource elements/resource blocks) forthe scheduled entity 204 to transmit the data to the scheduled entity202. The scheduling request may be transmitted, for example, via thePUCCH within an UL burst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot.

In response to the scheduling request, the scheduling entity 204 mayallocate a set of one or more resource elements (e.g. which maycorrespond to one or more resource blocks) to the scheduled entity 204,and at 604, transmit scheduling information corresponding to the uplinkgrant (e.g., information indicative of the assigned resource elements)to the scheduled entity 204. The scheduling information may betransmitted, for example, via the PDCCH within a DL burst of aDL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot. In some examples, the schedulinginformation may be masked (scrambled) with the cell radio networktemporary identifier (C-RNTI) of the scheduled entity. At 606, thescheduled entity 204 may then utilize the assigned uplink resourceelement(s) to transmit the data (traffic) to the scheduling entity 202.The assigned uplink resources for the traffic may be within the sameslot as the PDCCH (e.g., when the PDCCH is transmitted in an UL-centricslot) or within a subsequent slot (e.g., when the PDCCH is transmittedin a DL-centric slot).

FIG. 7 is a signaling diagram 700 illustrating exemplary signaling forsemi-persistent scheduling (SPS) according to some aspects of thepresent disclosure. Generally, SPS may be used for periodiccommunications based on defined settings. For example, SPS may besuitable for applications with small, predictable, and/or periodicpayloads, such as voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) applications. Toavoid overwhelming the PDCCH, scheduling information corresponding to anuplink grant may be signaled just once on the PDCCH. Subsequently,without needing to receive additional scheduling information, thescheduled entity 204 may periodically utilize the resources allocated inthe uplink grant. The periodicity with which the scheduled entity 204may transmit user data traffic via the semi-persistently scheduledresources may be established when the SPS uplink grant is initiallyconfigured.

With reference to the diagram illustrated in FIG. 7, at 702, thescheduling entity 202 may configure SPS for a scheduled entity 204 andtransmit scheduling information containing SPS configuration parametersto the scheduled entity 204. The SPS configuration message including thescheduling information may be transmitted, for example, via the PDCCHwithin a DL burst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot. The SPSconfiguration parameters may include, for example, an indication of theallocated resources for the SPS uplink grant, a semi-persistentscheduling identifier (e.g., an SPS-RNTI) for the scheduled entity 204and a periodicity of the SPS uplink grant. The SPS-RNTI may be assignedby the scheduling entity 202 and utilized to scramble subsequenttransmissions related to the SPS uplink grant. Additional SPSconfiguration parameters may also include, but are not limited to, animplicit release time, cyclic shift DMRS configuration, modulation andcoding scheme (MCS) and/or other parameters.

The scheduling entity may configure the SPS grant at any time based onthe service requirements of the scheduled entity 204 or in response to arequest by the scheduled entity 204. For example, the scheduling entity202 may configure the SPS grant based on the Quality of Service (QoS) tobe provided to the scheduled entity and/or a type of traffic to be sentby the scheduling entity. In some examples, the scheduling entity 202may configure the SPS uplink grant upon dedicated bearer establishmentfor a VoIP service. As another example, the scheduling entity 202 mayconfigure the SPS uplink grant to meet a low-latency QoS requirement forone or more uplink packets. SPS may be configured, for example, via aradio resource control (RRC) protocol.

Once configured, in order to begin using the SPS uplink grant, at 704,the scheduling entity 204 may then transmit an SPS activation messagescrambled with the SPS-RNTI to the scheduled entity 204 to activate theSPS uplink grant and enable the scheduled entity 204 to utilize the SPSuplink grant based on the SPS configuration parameters. The SPSactivation message may be transmitted, for example, via the PDCCH withina DL burst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot. At 706 and 708,the scheduled entity 204 may then utilize the assigned uplink resourcesto periodically transmit uplink traffic to the scheduling entity withinan UL-centric slot based on the periodicity of the SPS uplink grant.During periods of silence or when a data transfer is complete, at 710,the SPS uplink grant may be deactivated/released. For example, anexplicit deactivation/release message may be transmitted from thescheduling entity 202 to the scheduled entity 204. In other examples,the scheduled entity 204 may initiate an inactivity timer with theimplicit release time received as part of the SPS configurationparameters, and when the inactivity timer expires, the scheduled entity204 may release the SPS uplink resources.

While the SPS uplink grant is activated, the allocated uplink resources,MCS and other SPS configuration parameters remain fixed. However,retransmissions (e.g., HARQ retransmissions) may be dynamicallyscheduled between SPS intervals using the SPS-RNTI. In addition, if theradio link conditions change, a new SPS uplink grant may need to beconfigured and activated.

In some examples, the SPS uplink grant may be a dedicated SPS uplinkgrant in which the assigned uplink resources (e.g., the set of one ormore resource elements allocated to the SPS uplink grant) and theperiodicity associated with the assigned uplink resources are dedicatedto the scheduled entity 204. In other examples, the SPS uplink grant maybe a contention-based SPS uplink grant in which at least a portion ofthe assigned uplink resources and the periodicity associated with theassigned uplink resources may be granted to two or more scheduledentities simultaneously. With contention-based SPS, partially or fullyoverlapping transmissions from two or more scheduled entities may besimultaneously received by the scheduling entity 202, resulting in acollision between the uplink transmissions. To enable the schedulingentity 202 to properly decode each of the overlapping uplinktransmissions, each scheduled entity 204 may be configured with adifferent DMRS (e.g., as indicated in the SPS configuration parameters)that is transmitted together with the uplink traffic. The schedulingentity 202 may then differentiate the traffic from each of the scheduledentities based on the respective DMRS transmitted by each of thescheduled entities.

In some examples, a contention-based SPS uplink grant may be utilized tosupport low-latency and/or small packets that may not necessarily beperiodic in nature. Therefore, with contention-based SPS uplink grants,the scheduled entity 204 may choose whether or not to use the grant. Forexample, if the scheduled entity 204 does not have any traffic to sendduring the next time interval corresponding to the contention-based SPSuplink grant, the scheduled entity may not send a packet over theassigned uplink resources. By contrast, with dedicated SPS uplinkgrants, even when the scheduled entity does not have traffic to send(e.g., during silent periods), the scheduled entity may still need totransmit a packet with no data.

The configuration of each type of uplink grant (e.g., dynamic, dedicatedSPS and contention-based SPS) may be based, for example, on thescheduled entity service requirements. For example, to support periodicuplink transmissions, the scheduling entity 202 may configure adedicated SPS uplink grant for the scheduled entity 204. As anotherexample, to support random packet arrival, with small packet size and/ortight delay constraints, the scheduling entity 202 may configure acontention-based SPS uplink grant for the scheduled entity 204 and otherscheduled entities. In addition, to support bursty, infrequent orbandwidth consuming transmissions, the scheduling entity 202 mayconfigure a dynamic uplink grant in response to a scheduling requestfrom the scheduled entity 204.

In accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure, to supportthe different types of service with different traffic patterns andquality of service (QoS) requirements, a scheduled entity 204 in a nextgeneration (5G) wireless access network may be simultaneously configuredwith multiple uplink grants of different types. In some examples, ascheduled entity 204 may be simultaneously configured with both adedicated SPS uplink grant and a contention-based SPS uplink grant, inconjunction with a dynamic uplink grant.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareimplementation for an exemplary scheduling entity 800 employing aprocessing system 814. For example, the scheduling entity 800 may be anext generation (5G) base station as illustrated in any one or more ofFIGS. 1 and 2. In another example, the scheduling entity 800 may be auser equipment (UE) as illustrated in any one or more of FIGS. 1 and 2.

The scheduling entity 800 may be implemented with a processing system814 that includes one or more processors 804. Examples of processors 804include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors(DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logicdevices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits,and other suitable hardware configured to perform the variousfunctionality described throughout this disclosure. In various examples,the scheduling entity 800 may be configured to perform any one or moreof the functions described herein. That is, the processor 804, asutilized in a scheduling entity 800, may be used to implement any one ormore of the processes described below.

In this example, the processing system 814 may be implemented with a busarchitecture, represented generally by the bus 802. The bus 802 mayinclude any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on thespecific application of the processing system 814 and the overall designconstraints. The bus 802 communicatively couples together variouscircuits including one or more processors (represented generally by theprocessor 804), a memory 805, and computer-readable media (representedgenerally by the computer-readable medium 806). The bus 802 may alsolink various other circuits such as timing sources, peripherals, voltageregulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in theart, and therefore, will not be described any further. A bus interface808 provides an interface between the bus 802 and a transceiver 810. Thetransceiver 810 provides a means for communicating with various otherapparatus over a transmission medium (e.g., air interface). Dependingupon the nature of the apparatus, a user interface 812 (e.g., keypad,display, speaker, microphone, joystick) may also be provided.

The processor 804 is responsible for managing the bus 802 and generalprocessing, including the execution of software stored on thecomputer-readable medium 806. The software, when executed by theprocessor 804, causes the processing system 814 to perform the variousfunctions described below for any particular apparatus. Thecomputer-readable medium 806 and the memory 805 may also be used forstoring data that is manipulated by the processor 804 when executingsoftware.

One or more processors 804 in the processing system may executesoftware. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions,instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs,subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications,software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, threadsof execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referred to assoftware, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware descriptionlanguage, or otherwise. The software may reside on a computer-readablemedium 806.

The computer-readable medium 806 may be a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium. A non-transitory computer-readable mediumincludes, by way of example, a magnetic storage device (e.g., hard disk,floppy disk, magnetic strip), an optical disk (e.g., a compact disc (CD)or a digital versatile disc (DVD)), a smart card, a flash memory device(e.g., a card, a stick, or a key drive), a random access memory (RAM), aread only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable PROM(EPROM), an electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), a register, a removabledisk, and any other suitable medium for storing software and/orinstructions that may be accessed and read by a computer. Thecomputer-readable medium may also include, by way of example, a carrierwave, a transmission line, and any other suitable medium fortransmitting software and/or instructions that may be accessed and readby a computer. The computer-readable medium 806 may reside in theprocessing system 814, external to the processing system 814, ordistributed across multiple entities including the processing system814. The computer-readable medium 806 may be embodied in a computerprogram product. By way of example, a computer program product mayinclude a computer-readable medium in packaging materials. Those skilledin the art will recognize how best to implement the describedfunctionality presented throughout this disclosure depending on theparticular application and the overall design constraints imposed on theoverall system.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the processor 804 may includecircuitry configured for various functions. For example, the processor804 may include resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841,configured to generate, schedule, and modify a resource assignment orgrant of time-frequency resources (e.g., a set of one or more resourceelements). For example, the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry841 may schedule time-frequency resources within a plurality of timedivision duplex (TDD) and/or frequency division duplex (FDD) subframesor slots to carry data and/or control information to and/or frommultiple UEs (scheduled entities).

In various aspects of the disclosure, the resource assignment andscheduling circuitry 841 may be configured to schedule multiple uplinkgrants for a single scheduled entity. Each uplink grant may be of adifferent type to accommodate different service requirements for thescheduled entity. In some examples, the resource assignment andscheduling circuitry 841 may be configured to allocate a first set ofresource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with afirst uplink grant of a first type of semi-persistent scheduling (SPS)and a second set of resource elements for use by the scheduled entity inaccordance with a second uplink grant of a second type of SPS. Forexample, the first type of SPS may be dedicated SPS, while the secondtype of SPS may be contention-based SPS. The resource assignment andscheduling circuitry 841 may further be configured to allocate a thirdset of resource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordancewith a third uplink grant. For example, the third uplink grant may be adynamic uplink grant.

In some examples, the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841may configure the dynamic uplink grant (e.g., allocate the set ofresource elements to the dynamic uplink grant) in response to receivinga scheduling request from the scheduled entity. In addition, theresource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841 may configure each SPSuplink grant at any time based on the service requirements of thescheduled entity or in response to a request by the scheduled entity.

To configure each of the SPS uplink grants, the resource assignment andscheduling circuitry 841 may establish respective SPS configurationparameters for each SPS uplink grant. For example, the SPS configurationparameters for each SPS uplink grant may include an indication of theallocated resources (e.g., set of one or more resource elements) for theSPS uplink grant, a semi-persistent scheduling identifier (e.g., anSPS-RNTI) for the scheduled entity and a periodicity of the SPS uplinkgrant. Additional SPS configuration parameters may also include, but arenot limited to, an implicit release time, cyclic shift DMRSconfiguration, modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and/or otherparameters.

In some examples, the SPS configuration parameters for each of the SPSuplink grants are different (e.g., at least one of the parameters has adifferent value in each of the SPS uplink grants). For example, the setof resource elements allocated to the first SPS uplink grant may beorthogonal to the set of resource elements allocated to second SPSuplink grant (e.g., the resource elements may be configured in a timedivision multiplexed (TDM) manner). However, in other examples, one ormore of the SPS configuration parameters may be the same between the twoSPS uplink grants. For example, the set of resource elements allocatedto the first SPS uplink grant may be partially or completely overlappingthe set of resource elements allocated to the second SPS grant. Inaddition, one or more of the MCS, cyclic shift DMRS, implicit releasetime and periodicity assigned to each of the SPS uplink grants may bethe same or different.

In an aspect of the disclosure, the scheduled entity may besimultaneously configured with the first, second and third uplinkgrants. However, the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841need not configure each of the first, second, and third uplink grants atthe same time. For example, the resource assignment and schedulingcircuitry 841 may configure the two SPS uplink grants, and during thependency of the two SPS uplink grants (e.g., before either of the SPSuplink grants have been released), configure the dynamic uplink grant.The two SPS uplink grants may be configured at the same time or atdifferent times, depending on the service requirements of the scheduledentity. The resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841 may furtheroperate in coordination with resource assignment and scheduling software851.

The processor 804 may further include downlink (DL) traffic and controlchannel generation and transmission circuitry 842, configured togenerate and transmit downlink user data traffic and control channelswithin one or more subframes or slots. The DL traffic and controlchannel generation and transmission circuitry 842 may operate incoordination with the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841to place the DL user data traffic and/or control information onto a timedivision duplex (TDD) or frequency division duplex (FDD) carrier byincluding the DL user data traffic and/or control information within oneor more subframes or slots in accordance with the resources assigned tothe DL user data traffic and/or control information.

For example, the DL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 842 may be configured to generate a physicaldownlink control channel (PDCCH) (or Enhanced PDCCH (ePDCCH)) includingdownlink control information (DCI). In some examples, each DCI mayinclude control information indicating an assignment of downlinkresources for downlink user data traffic or a grant of uplink resourcesfor one or more scheduled entities. For example, the DL traffic andcontrol channel generation and transmission circuitry 842 may beconfigured to include, within separate DCI, scheduling information formultiple uplink grants for a particular scheduled entity. In an example,a first DCI may include SPS configuration parameters associated with adedicated SPS uplink grant for a scheduled entity, a second DCI mayinclude SPS configuration parameters associated with a contention-basedSPS uplink grant for the scheduled entity, and a third DCI may indicatethe allocated resources associated with a dynamic uplink grant for thescheduled entity.

In addition, for each of the SPS uplink grants, additional DCI may begenerated and transmitted to the scheduled entity, each including anactivation of the respective SPS uplink grant to enable the scheduledentity to begin utilizing the SPS uplink grants. In some examples, if ascheduled entity is configured with two SPS uplink grants of differenttypes, the DL data and control channel generation and transmissioncircuitry may jointly or separately activate the SPS uplink grants.Similarly, additional DCI may also be generated to deactivate/releaseone or more the SPS uplink grants. In some examples, SPS uplink grantsof different types may be jointly or separately deactivated/released.

The DL traffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry842 may further be configured to generate a physical downlink sharedchannel (PDSCH) (or Enhanced PDSCH (ePDSCH)) including downlink userdata traffic. The DL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 842 may further operate in coordination with DLtraffic and control channel generation and transmission software 852.

The processor 804 may further include uplink (UL) traffic and controlchannel reception and processing circuitry 843, configured to receiveand process uplink control channels and uplink traffic channels from oneor more scheduled entities. For example, the UL traffic and controlchannel reception and processing circuitry 843 may be configured toreceive a dynamic scheduling request or a request for an SPS uplinkgrant from a scheduled entity. The UL traffic and control channelreception and processing circuitry 843 may further be configured toprovide the scheduling request or SPS uplink grant request to theresource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841 for processing.

The UL traffic and control channel reception and processing circuitry843 may further be configured to receive uplink user data traffic fromone or more scheduled entities. In some examples, the UL traffic andcontrol channel reception and processing circuitry 843 may receive userdata traffic from a scheduled entity that has multiple uplink grants ofdifferent types. In this example, the UL traffic and control channelreception and processing circuitry 843 may receive user data trafficfrom the scheduled entity on at least one set of resource elementsallocated to the scheduled entity. For dynamic uplink grants, the ULtraffic and control channel reception and processing circuitry 843 mayreceive user data traffic from the scheduled entity in accordance withthe set of resource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant. Insome examples, the scheduling information indicating the allocated setof resource elements may be included at the beginning of an UL-centricslot and the scheduled user data traffic may be received by the ULtraffic and control channel reception and processing circuitry 843within the same UL-centric slot.

In addition, if at least one SPS uplink grant is active, the UL trafficand control channel reception and processing circuitry 843 may receiveuplink user data traffic from the scheduled entity on the set ofresource elements allocated for that SPS uplink grant at periodicintervals determined by the SPS configuration parameters. For acontention-based SPS uplink grant, the UL traffic and control channelreception and processing circuitry 843 may receive overlappingtransmissions from two or more scheduled entities on the set of resourceelements allocated to the contention-based SPS uplink grant. In someexamples, each of the overlapping transmissions includes a differentDMRS. Therefore, the UL traffic and control channel reception andprocessing circuitry 843 may decode each of the overlappingtransmissions utilizing the different DMRS.

In general, the UL traffic and control channel reception and processingcircuitry 843 may operate in coordination with the resource assignmentand scheduling circuitry 841 to schedule UL user data traffictransmissions, DL user data traffic transmissions and/or DL user datatraffic retransmissions in accordance with the received UL controlinformation. The UL traffic and control channel reception and processingcircuitry 843 may further operate in coordination with UL traffic andcontrol channel reception and processing software 853.

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareimplementation for an exemplary scheduled entity 900 employing aprocessing system 914. In accordance with various aspects of thedisclosure, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combinationof elements may be implemented with a processing system 914 thatincludes one or more processors 904. For example, the scheduled entity900 may be a user equipment (UE) as illustrated in any one or more ofFIGS. 1 and 2.

The processing system 914 may be substantially the same as theprocessing system 814 illustrated in FIG. 8, including a bus interface908, a bus 902, memory 905, a processor 904, and a computer-readablemedium 906. Furthermore, the scheduled entity 900 may include a userinterface 912 and a transceiver 910 substantially similar to thosedescribed above in FIG. 8. That is, the processor 904, as utilized in ascheduled entity 900, may be used to implement any one or more of theprocesses described below.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the processor 904 may include uplink(UL) traffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry941, configured to generate and transmit uplinkcontrol/feedback/acknowledgement information on an UL control channel.For example, the UL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 941 may be configured to generate and transmit anuplink control channel (e.g., a Physical Uplink Control Channel(PUCCH)). In some examples, the UL traffic and control channelgeneration and transmission circuitry 941 may be configured to detectthe presence of user data traffic in an uplink buffer (e.g., data buffer915) and to generate and transmit a dynamic scheduling request to ascheduling entity to request uplink resources (e.g., a set of one ormore uplink resource elements) for transmitting the user data traffic tothe scheduling entity. The UL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 941 may further be configured to generate andtransmit a request for an SPS uplink grant for low-latency and/orperiodic transmissions.

The UL traffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry941 may further be configured to generate and transmit uplink user datatraffic on an UL traffic channel (e.g., a PUSCH) in accordance with anuplink grant. In some examples, the scheduled entity 900 may beconfigured with multiple uplink grants of different types and the ULtraffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry 941may utilize the respective allocated resources for each uplink grant totransmit uplink user data traffic in accordance with each of the uplinkgrants. For example, the multiple uplink grants may include a dynamicuplink grant, a dedicated SPS uplink grant and a contention-based SPSuplink grant. The UL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 941 may operate in coordination with UL trafficand control channel generation and transmission software 951.

The processor 904 may further include downlink (DL) traffic and controlchannel reception and processing circuitry 942, configured for receivingand processing downlink user data traffic on a traffic channel, and toreceive and process control information on one or more downlink controlchannels. For example, the DL traffic and control channel reception andprocessing circuitry 942 may be configured to receive downlink controlinformation (DCI) (e.g., within a PDCCH) including one or more uplinkgrants, where each uplink grant may be a different grant type (e.g.,contention-based SPS, dedicated SPS and/or dynamic). The DL traffic andcontrol channel reception and processing circuitry 942 may then providethe scheduling information associated with each uplink grant to the ULtraffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry 941for use in transmitting uplink user data traffic to the schedulingentity. The DL traffic and control channel reception and processingcircuitry 942 may operate in coordination with DL traffic and controlchannel reception and processing software 952.

The processor 904 may further include uplink grant management circuitry943, configured to manage multiple uplink grants for the scheduledentity 900. In some examples, the multiple uplink grants may include oneor more dedicated SPS uplink grants, one or more contention-based SPSuplink grants and a dynamic uplink grant. In some examples, if the setof resource elements allocated for the dynamic uplink grant overlaps oneor more of the SPS uplink grants (e.g., in time or time and frequency),the uplink grant management circuitry 943 may be configured toprioritize the dynamic uplink grant over any of the SPS uplink grants.Thus, the uplink grant management circuitry 943 may instruct the ULtraffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry 941 totransmit user data traffic associated with the dynamic uplink grant onthe set of resource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant andto delay transmission of any SPS traffic until the next SPS transmissiontime.

In addition, if the set of resource elements allocated for a dedicatedSPS uplink grant overlaps the set of resource elements allocated for acontention-based SPS uplink grant (e.g., in time or time and frequency),the uplink grant management circuitry 943 may be configured toprioritize the dedicated SPS uplink grant over the contention-based SPSuplink grant. Thus, the uplink grant management circuitry 943 mayinstruct the UL traffic and control channel generation and transmissioncircuitry 941 to transmit user data traffic associated with thededicated SPS uplink grant on the set of resource elements allocated tothe dedicated SPS uplink grant and to delay transmission of any userdata traffic associated with the contention-based SPS uplink grant untilthe next contention-based SPS transmission time.

In some examples, the uplink grant management circuitry 943 may furtherbe configured to select one of the uplink grants based on the user datatraffic to be transmitted. For example, if the user data traffic isperiodic, the uplink grant management circuitry 943 may select thededicated SPS uplink grant for transmission of the user data traffic.For user data traffic with small packets or tight delay constraints(e.g., low-latency packets), the uplink grant management circuitry 943may select the contention-based SPS uplink grant for transmission of theuser data traffic. For user data traffic with larger sized packets, theuplink grant management circuitry 943 may select the dynamic uplinkgrant for transmission of the user data traffic.

The uplink grant management circuitry 943 may further be configured toprovide different open-loop power control configurations for one or moreof the uplink grants. In some examples, the open-loop power controlconfiguration for the dynamic uplink grant may be different than theopen-loop power control configuration for each of the SPS uplink grants.In some examples, the open-loop power control configurations for eachSPS uplink grant type may also differ. Thus, the uplink grant managementcircuitry 943 may be configured to control a power source 916 to providea different uplink transmit power for transmissions associated with thededicated SPS uplink grant than that used for transmissions associatedwith the contention-based SPS uplink grant. The uplink grant managementcircuitry 943 may operate in coordination with uplink grant managementsoftware 953.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a physical downlinkcontrol channel (PDCCH) 1000 carrying control information. As shown inFIG. 10, the PDCCH 1000 may include a plurality of downlink channelinformation (DCI) 1010 (e.g., DCI-1 DCI-N). Each DCI 1010 may includescheduling assignments (e.g., downlink assignments and/or uplink grants)for one or more scheduled entities.

In the example shown in FIG. 10, the PDCCH 1000 includes multiple DCIs1010 for a single UE (e.g., UE1). For example, DCI-1 may include adedicated SPS uplink grant for UE1, DCI-2 may include a contention-basedSPS uplink grant for UE1, and DCI-3 may include a dynamic uplink grantfor UE1. Thus, DCI-1, DCI-2, and DCI-3 may each include respectivescheduling information indicating a set of one or more resource elements(e.g., time-frequency resources) allocated for the uplink grants. Inaddition, DCI-1 and DCI-2 may each further include respective SPSconfiguration parameters for the SPS uplink grants. Additional DCI 1010within the PDCCH 1000 or a subsequent PDCCH may include an activationfor each of the SPS uplink grants to enable UE1 to begin to utilize theSPS uplink grants based on the SPS configuration parameters for each ofthe SPS uplink grants. To deactivate/release either of the SPS uplinkgrants, a subsequent PDCCH may include DCI that include an explicitdeactivation/release of the SPS uplink grant.

Although multiple uplink grants are illustrated in FIG. 10 as beingincluded within a single PDCCH, it should be understood that thedifferent uplink grants for UE1 may be included in two or more PDCCH.For example, the SPS grants may be included in one PDCCH, while thedynamic grant is included in another PDCCH. In addition, each of the SPSuplink grants may be included in a separate PDCCH.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary process 1100 forsimultaneously scheduling multiple uplink grants for a scheduled entityin a wireless communication network according to some aspects of thepresent disclosure. As described below, some or all illustrated featuresmay be omitted in a particular implementation within the scope of thepresent disclosure, and some illustrated features may not be requiredfor implementation of all embodiments. In some examples, the process1100 may be carried out by the scheduling entity illustrated in FIG. 8.In some examples, the process 1100 may be carried out by any suitableapparatus or means for carrying out the functions or algorithm describedbelow.

At block 1102, the scheduling entity may allocate a first set ofresource elements for use by a scheduled entity in accordance with afirst uplink grant of a first type of semi-persistent scheduling (SPS).For example, the scheduling entity may allocate a first set of resourceelements for a dedicated SPS uplink grant. At block 1104, the schedulingentity may allocate a second set of resource elements for use by thescheduled entity in accordance with a second uplink grant of a secondtype of semi-persistent scheduling (SPS). For example, the schedulingentity may allocate a second set of resource elements for acontention-based SPS uplink grant. For example, the resource assignmentand scheduling circuitry 841 shown and described above in reference toFIG. 8 may allocate the first and second sets of resource elements forthe first and second uplink grants.

At block 1106, the scheduling entity may allocate a third set ofresource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with athird uplink grant, where the third uplink grant is a dynamic schedulinggrant. The dynamic scheduling grant may be provided, for example, inresponse to receiving a scheduling request from the scheduled entity.For example, the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841 shownand described above in reference to FIG. 8 may allocate the third set ofresource elements for the third uplink grant.

At block 1108, the scheduling entity may transmit scheduling informationcorresponding to each of the uplink grants to the scheduled entity. Insome examples, the scheduling entity may transmit SPS configurationparameters containing the scheduling information for each of the SPSuplink grants within respective DCI of one or more PDCCH. The schedulingentity may further transmit the scheduling information indicating theallocated set of resource elements for the dynamic scheduling grantwithin DCI of a PDCCH. The PDCCH carrying the dynamic schedulinginformation may be the same PDCCH that includes one or both of the SPSuplink grants or a subsequent PDCCH. In general, the dynamic schedulinginformation may be transmitted to the scheduled entity together with theSPS configuration parameters for one or both of the SPS uplink grants orafter the SPS configuration parameters for both of the SPS uplinkgrants, but prior to deactivation/release of either SPS uplink grant.Thus, the scheduled entity may be simultaneously configured with adedicated SPS uplink grant, a contention-based SPS uplink grant and adynamic uplink grant. For example, the DL traffic and control channelgeneration and transmission circuitry 842 and transceiver 810 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 8 may transmit the schedulinginformation corresponding to each of the first, second, and third uplinkgrants to the scheduled entity.

FIG. 12 is a flow chart illustrating another exemplary process 1200 forsimultaneously scheduling multiple uplink grants for a scheduled entityin a wireless communication network according to some aspects of thepresent disclosure. As described below, some or all illustrated featuresmay be omitted in a particular implementation within the scope of thepresent disclosure, and some illustrated features may not be requiredfor implementation of all embodiments. In some examples, the process1200 may be carried out by the scheduling entity illustrated in FIG. 8.In some examples, the process 1200 may be carried out by any suitableapparatus or means for carrying out the functions or algorithm describedbelow.

At block 1202, the scheduling entity may determine that a dedicated SPSuplink grant and a contention-based SPS uplink grant are needed for ascheduled entity. In some examples, the scheduling entity may determinethat both a dedicated SPS uplink grant and a contention-based SPS uplinkgrant are needed for a scheduled entity based on the Quality of Service(QoS) to be provided to the scheduled entity and/or a type of traffic tobe sent by the scheduling entity. For example, to support periodicuplink transmissions, the scheduling entity may determine that adedicated SPS uplink grant is needed for the scheduled entity. Asanother example, to support random packet arrival, with small packetsize and/or tight delay constraints, the scheduling entity may determinethat a contention-based SPS uplink grant is needed for the scheduledentity and other scheduled entities. For example, the resourceassignment and scheduling circuitry 841 shown and described above inreference to FIG. 8 may determine that both dedicated andcontention-based SPS uplink grants are needed for a scheduled entity.

At block 1204, the scheduling entity may configure the dedicated SPSuplink grant and transmit scheduling information containing SPSconfiguration parameters for the dedicated SPS uplink grant to thescheduled entity. At block 1206, the scheduling entity may configure thecontention-based SPS uplink grant and transmit scheduling informationcontaining SPS configuration parameters for the contention-based SPSuplink grant to the scheduled entity. SPS configuration messagesincluding the scheduling information for each of the dedicated andcontention-based SPS uplink grants may be transmitted, for example, viathe PDCCH within a DL burst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot.The two SPS uplink grants may be configured at the same time or atdifferent times, depending on the service requirements of the scheduledentity. In some examples, the SPS configuration parameters for each SPSuplink grant may include an indication of the allocated resources (e.g.,set of one or more resource elements) for the SPS uplink grant, asemi-persistent scheduling identifier (e.g., an SPS-RNTI) for thescheduled entity and a periodicity of the SPS uplink grant. AdditionalSPS configuration parameters may also include, but are not limited to,an implicit release time, cyclic shift DMRS configuration, modulationand coding scheme (MCS) and/or other parameters.

In some examples, the SPS configuration parameters for each of the SPSuplink grants are different (e.g., at least one of the parameters has adifferent value in each of the SPS uplink grants). For example, the setof resource elements allocated to the first SPS uplink grant may beorthogonal to the set of resource elements allocated to second SPSuplink grant (e.g., the resource elements may be configured in a timedivision multiplexed (TDM) manner). However, in other examples, one ormore of the SPS configuration parameters may be the same between the twoSPS uplink grants. For example, the set of resource elements allocatedto the first SPS uplink grant may be partially or completely overlappingthe set of resource elements allocated to the second SPS grant. Inaddition, one or more of the MCS, cyclic shift DMRS, implicit releasetime and periodicity assigned to each of the SPS uplink grants may bethe same or different. For example, the resource assignment andscheduling circuitry 841 shown and described above in reference to FIG.8 may configure the dedicated and contention-based SPS uplink grants forthe scheduled entity.

At block 1208, the scheduling entity may activate the dedicated SPSuplink grant. At block 1210, the scheduling entity may activate thecontention-based SPS uplink grant. In some examples, the schedulingentity may transmit a respective SPS activation message scrambled withthe SPS-RNTI to the scheduled entity to activate each of the dedicatedand contention-based SPS uplink grants and enable the scheduled entityto utilize the SPS uplink grants based on the SPS configurationparameters. The SPS activation messages may be transmitted, for example,via the PDCCH within a DL burst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centricslot. The dedicated and contention-based SPS uplink grants may beactivated at the same time or at different times. For example, the DLtraffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry 842may activate the dedicated and contention-based SPS uplink grants forthe scheduled entity.

At block 1212, the scheduling entity may receive a scheduling requestfor a dynamic uplink grant from the scheduled entity. The schedulingrequest may be transmitted, for example, via the PUCCH within an ULburst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot. For example, the ULtraffic and control channel reception and processing circuitry 843 shownand described above in reference to FIG. 8 may receive the schedulingrequest from the scheduled entity. In addition, although FIG. 12illustrates the scheduling entity receiving the scheduling request afterconfiguration and activation of the SPS uplink grants, in otherexamples, the scheduling entity may receive the scheduling request priorto configuration and/or activation of the SPS uplink grants.

In response to the scheduling request, at block 1214, the schedulingentity may configure the dynamic uplink grant by allocating resourceelements to the scheduled entity for the dynamic uplink grant. Forexample, the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 8 may configure the dynamic uplinkgrant.

At block 1216, the scheduling entity may transmit scheduling informationcorresponding to the dynamic uplink grant (e.g., information indicativeof the assigned resource elements) to the scheduled entity. Thescheduling information may be transmitted, for example, via the PDCCHwithin a DL burst of a DL-centric slot or an UL-centric slot. In someexamples, the scheduling information may be masked (scrambled) with thecell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI) of the scheduledentity. For example, the DL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 842 and transceiver 810 may transmit thescheduling information corresponding to the dynamic uplink grant to thescheduled entity. In addition, although FIG. 12 illustrates thescheduling entity transmitting the dynamic uplink grant schedulinginformation to the scheduled entity after configuration and activationof the SPS uplink grants, in other examples, the scheduling entity maytransmit the dynamic uplink grant scheduling information simultaneous tothe SPS configuration messages and/or the SPS activation messages.

At block 1218, the scheduling entity may receive user data traffic fromthe scheduled entity for one or more of the uplink grants. For example,the scheduling entity may receive user data traffic on the resourceelements allocated to the dedicated SPS uplink grant, thecontention-based SPS uplink grant and/or the dynamic uplink grant. Forexample, the UL traffic and control channel reception and processingcircuitry 843 may receive the user data traffic from the scheduledentity.

At block 1220, the scheduling entity may determine whether to deactivateand release one or both of the SPS uplink grants. If one or both of theSPS uplink grants is to be activated and released (Y branch of block1220), at block 1222, the scheduling entity deactivates and releases oneor both of the SPS uplink grants. For example, during periods of silenceor when a data transfer is complete for a particular one of the SPSuplink grants, that particular SPS uplink grant may bedeactivated/released. In some examples, an explicit deactivation/releasemessage may be transmitted from the scheduling entity to the scheduledentity. For example, to deactivate/release either of the SPS uplinkgrants, a subsequent PDCCH may include DCI that include an explicitdeactivation/release of the SPS uplink grant. In other examples, thescheduled entity may initiate an inactivity timer with the implicitrelease time received as part of the SPS configuration parameters for aparticular SPS uplink grant, and when the inactivity timer expires, thescheduled entity may release the SPS uplink resources to the schedulingentity. The dedicated and contention-based SPS uplink grants may bedeactivated/released at the same time or at different times. Forexample, the resource assignment and scheduling circuitry 841 maydeactivate and release one or both of the SPS uplink grants.

FIG. 13 is a flow chart illustrating another exemplary process 1300 forselecting between multiple uplink grants simultaneously configured for ascheduled entity in a wireless communication network according to someaspects of the present disclosure. As described below, some or allillustrated features may be omitted in a particular implementationwithin the scope of the present disclosure, and some illustratedfeatures may not be required for implementation of all embodiments. Insome examples, the process 1300 may be carried out by the scheduledentity illustrated in FIG. 9. In some examples, the process 1300 may becarried out by any suitable apparatus or means for carrying out thefunctions or algorithm described below.

At block 1302, the scheduled entity may receive scheduling informationcorresponding to a dynamic uplink grant, a dedicated SPS uplink grantand a contention-based SPS uplink grant to simultaneously configure thescheduled entity with a dedicated SPS uplink grant, a contention-basedSPS uplink grant and a dynamic uplink grant. In some examples, thescheduling information for each of the uplink grants (e.g., dynamic,dedicated SPS, and contention-based SPS) may be received within separatedownlink control information (DCI) of a single physical downlink controlchannel (PDCCH). In other examples, the scheduling information for thedynamic uplink grant may be received subsequent to the schedulinginformation for at least one of the SPS uplink grants. For example, thescheduling information for one of the SPS uplink grants may be receivedin the DCI of an initial PDCCH, while the scheduling information for theother SPS uplink grant and the dynamic uplink grant may be received inthe DCI of one or more subsequent PDCCHs. For example, the DL trafficand control channel reception and processing circuitry 942 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 9 may receive the schedulinginformation for each of the dedicated SPS uplink grant, thecontention-based SPS uplink grant, and the dynamic uplink grant.

At block 1304, the scheduled entity may determine that there is userdata traffic to be transmitted to the scheduling entity, and at block1306, select at least one of the uplink grants for transmission of theuser data traffic to the scheduling entity. For example, the scheduledentity may detect the presence of user data traffic in an uplink bufferand select one or more of the uplink grants to transmit the user datatraffic to the scheduling entity. For example, the UL grant managementcircuitry 943 and UL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 941 shown and described above in reference toFIG. 9 may detect the presence of user data traffic to be transmittedand select one or more of the uplink grants to transmit the user datatraffic to the scheduling entity. At block 1308, the scheduled entitymay transmit the user data traffic to the scheduling entity utilizingthe selected uplink grant(s). For example, the UL traffic and controlchannel generation and transmission circuitry 941 shown and describedabove in reference to FIG. 9 may transmit the user data traffic to thescheduling entity utilizing the selected uplink grant(s) via the PUSCH.

FIG. 14 is a flow chart illustrating another exemplary process 1400 forselecting between multiple uplink grants simultaneously configured for ascheduled entity in a wireless communication network according to someaspects of the present disclosure. As described below, some or allillustrated features may be omitted in a particular implementationwithin the scope of the present disclosure, and some illustratedfeatures may not be required for implementation of all embodiments. Insome examples, the process 1400 may be carried out by the scheduledentity illustrated in FIG. 9. In some examples, the process 1400 may becarried out by any suitable apparatus or means for carrying out thefunctions or algorithm described below.

At block 1402, the scheduled entity may receive scheduling informationcorresponding to a dynamic uplink grant, a dedicated SPS uplink grantand a contention-based SPS uplink grant to simultaneously configure thescheduled entity with a dedicated SPS uplink grant, a contention-basedSPS uplink grant and a dynamic uplink grant. In some examples, thescheduling information for each of the uplink grants (e.g., dynamic,dedicated SPS, and contention-based SPS) may be received within separatedownlink control information (DCI) of a single physical downlink controlchannel (PDCCH). In other examples, the scheduling information for thedynamic uplink grant may be received subsequent to the schedulinginformation for at least one of the SPS uplink grants. For example, thescheduling information for one of the SPS uplink grants may be receivedin the DCI of an initial PDCCH, while the scheduling information for theother SPS uplink grant and the dynamic uplink grant may be received inthe DCI of one or more subsequent PDCCHs. For example, the DL trafficand control channel reception and processing circuitry 942 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 9 may receive the schedulinginformation for each of the dedicated SPS uplink grant, thecontention-based SPS uplink grant, and the dynamic uplink grant.

At block 1404, the scheduled entity may determine that there is userdata traffic to be transmitted to the scheduling entity, and identify atraffic type of the user data traffic. In some examples, the type oftraffic may include one or more of periodic traffic, small packet-sizedand/or low-latency traffic, or large packet-sized traffic. For example,the UL grant management circuitry 943 shown and described above inreference to FIG. 9 may identify the type of traffic to be transmittedto the scheduling entity.

At block 1406, the scheduled entity may determine whether the user datatraffic includes periodic traffic. If the user data traffic includesperiodic traffic (Y branch of block 1406), at block 1408, the scheduledentity may select the dedicated SPS uplink grant for transmission of theperiodic user data traffic. At block 1410, the scheduled entity thendetermines whether the user data traffic includes small packet-sizedand/or low-latency traffic. If the user data traffic includes smallpacket-sized and/or low-latency traffic (Y branch of block 1410), atblock 1412, the scheduled entity may select the contention-based SPSuplink grant for transmission of the small packet-sized and/orlow-latency user data traffic. At block 1414, the scheduled entity thendetermines whether the user data traffic includes large packet-sizedtraffic. If the user data traffic includes large packet-sized traffic,the scheduled entity may select the dynamic uplink grant fortransmission of the large packet-sized user data traffic. For example,the UL grant management circuitry 943 shown and described above inreference to FIG. 9 may select between the dedicated SPS uplink grant,contention-based SPS uplink grant and dynamic uplink grant based on thetraffic type(s) of the user data traffic to be transmitted.

FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating another exemplary process 1500 forselecting between multiple uplink grants simultaneously configured for ascheduled entity in a wireless communication network according to someaspects of the present disclosure. As described below, some or allillustrated features may be omitted in a particular implementationwithin the scope of the present disclosure, and some illustratedfeatures may not be required for implementation of all embodiments. Insome examples, the process 1500 may be carried out by the scheduledentity illustrated in FIG. 9. In some examples, the process 1500 may becarried out by any suitable apparatus or means for carrying out thefunctions or algorithm described below.

At block 1502, the scheduled entity may receive scheduling informationcorresponding to a dynamic uplink grant, a dedicated SPS uplink grantand a contention-based SPS uplink grant to simultaneously configure thescheduled entity with a dedicated SPS uplink grant, a contention-basedSPS uplink grant and a dynamic uplink grant. In some examples, thescheduling information for each of the uplink grants (e.g., dynamic,dedicated SPS, and contention-based SPS) may be received within separatedownlink control information (DCI) of a single physical downlink controlchannel (PDCCH). In other examples, the scheduling information for thedynamic uplink grant may be received subsequent to the schedulinginformation for at least one of the SPS uplink grants. For example, thescheduling information for one of the SPS uplink grants may be receivedin the DCI of an initial PDCCH, while the scheduling information for theother SPS uplink grant and the dynamic uplink grant may be received inthe DCI of one or more subsequent PDCCHs. For example, the DL trafficand control channel reception and processing circuitry 942 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 9 may receive the schedulinginformation for each of the dedicated SPS uplink grant, thecontention-based SPS uplink grant, and the dynamic uplink grant.

At block 1504, the scheduled entity may determine that there is userdata traffic to be transmitted to the scheduling entity for each of theuplink grants. For example, the UL traffic and control channelgeneration and transmission circuitry 941 and UL grant managementcircuitry 943 shown and described above in reference to FIG. 9 maydetermine that there is uplink user data traffic for each of the uplinkgrants (e.g., dedicated SPS, contention-based SPS and dynamic) to betransmitted to the scheduling entity.

At block 1506, the scheduled entity may determine whether the set ofresource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant overlaps therespective sets of resource elements allocated to one or both of the SPSuplink grants in time or in time and frequency. If the set of resourceelements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant overlaps the set ofresource elements allocated to the dedicated SPS uplink grant and/or theset of resource elements allocated to the contention-based SPS uplinkgrant (Y branch of block 1506), at block 1508, the scheduled entity mayprioritize the dynamic uplink grant over any of the SPS uplink grantsand transmit user data traffic associated with the dynamic uplink granton the set of resource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant.At block 1510, the scheduled entity may further transmit user datatraffic associated with a non-overlapping SPS grant on the set ofresource elements allocated to the non-overlapping SPS grant. If the setof resource elements allocated to each of the SPS grants overlaps theset of resource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant, block1510 may not be performed. The scheduling entity may further delaytransmission of any overlapping SPS traffic until the next SPStransmission time. For example, the UL grant management circuitry 943and UL traffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry941 shown and described above in reference to FIG. 9 may determinewhether there is resource overlap between the dynamic uplink grant andeither one or both of the SPS uplink grants and prioritize the dynamicuplink grant over the overlapping SPS uplink grant(s).

If the set of resource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grantdoes not overlap the respective set of resource elements allocated toeither the dedicated SPS uplink grant or the contention-based SPS uplinkgrant (N branch of block 1506), at block 1512, the scheduled entity maydetermine whether the set of resource elements allocated to one of theSPS uplink grants overlaps the set of resource elements allocated to theother SPS uplink grant in time or in time and frequency. If the set ofresource elements allocated to one of the SPS uplink grants overlaps theset of resource elements allocated to the other SPS uplink grant (Ybranch of block 1512), at block 1514, the scheduled entity mayprioritize the dedicated SPS uplink grant over the contention-based SPSuplink grant and transmit user data traffic associated with thededicated SPS uplink grant on the set of resource elements allocated tothe dedicated SPS uplink grant. The scheduled entity may further delaytransmission of any user data traffic associated with thecontention-based SPS uplink grant until the next contention-based SPStransmission time. At block 1516, the scheduled entity may furthertransmit the user data traffic associated with the dynamic uplink granton the set of resource elements allocated to the dynamic uplink grant.For example, the UL grant management circuitry 943 and UL traffic andcontrol channel generation and transmission circuitry 941 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 9 may determine whether there isresource overlap between the SPS uplink grants and prioritize thededicated SPS uplink grant over the overlapping contention-based SPSuplink grant.

If the set of resource elements allocated to one of the SPS uplinkgrants does not overlap the set of resource elements allocated to theother SPS uplink grant (N branch of block 1512), at block 1518, thescheduled entity may transmit user data traffic associated with both thededicated SPS uplink grant and the contention-based SPS uplink grant onthe respective sets of resource elements allocated to the dedicated andcontention-based SPS uplink grants. At block 1520, the scheduled entitymay further transmit the user data traffic associated with the dynamicuplink grant on the set of resource elements allocated to the dynamicuplink grant. For example, the UL grant management circuitry 943 and ULtraffic and control channel generation and transmission circuitry 941shown and described above in reference to FIG. 9 may determine whetherthere is resource overlap between the SPS uplink grants and/or betweenthe dynamic uplink grant and one or both of the SPS uplink grants, andif not, transmit the user data traffic on all three uplink grants.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary process 1600 forutilizing different uplink transmit powers for different uplink grantssimultaneously configured for a scheduling entity in a wirelesscommunication network according to some aspects of the presentdisclosure. As described below, some or all illustrated features may beomitted in a particular implementation within the scope of the presentdisclosure, and some illustrated features may not be required forimplementation of all embodiments. In some examples, the process 1600may be carried out by the scheduled entity illustrated in FIG. 9. Insome examples, the process 1600 may be carried out by any suitableapparatus or means for carrying out the functions or algorithm describedbelow.

At block 1602, the scheduled entity may receive scheduling informationcorresponding to a dynamic uplink grant, a dedicated SPS uplink grantand a contention-based SPS uplink grant to simultaneously configure thescheduled entity with a dedicated SPS uplink grant, a contention-basedSPS uplink grant and a dynamic uplink grant. In some examples, thescheduling information for each of the uplink grants (e.g., dynamic,dedicated SPS, and contention-based SPS) may be received within separatedownlink control information (DCI) of a single physical downlink controlchannel (PDCCH). In other examples, the scheduling information for thedynamic uplink grant may be received subsequent to the schedulinginformation for at least one of the SPS uplink grants. For example, thescheduling information for one of the SPS uplink grants may be receivedin the DCI of an initial PDCCH, while the scheduling information for theother SPS uplink grant and the dynamic uplink grant may be received inthe DCI of one or more subsequent PDCCHs. For example, the DL trafficand control channel reception and processing circuitry 942 shown anddescribed above in reference to FIG. 9 may receive the schedulinginformation for each of the dedicated SPS uplink grant, thecontention-based SPS uplink grant, and the dynamic uplink grant.

At block 1604, the scheduled entity may determine that there is userdata traffic to be transmitted to the scheduling entity, and at block1606, select at least one of the uplink grants for transmission of theuser data traffic to the scheduling entity. For example, the scheduledentity may detect the presence of user data traffic in an uplink bufferand select one or more of the uplink grants to transmit the user datatraffic to the scheduling entity. For example, the UL grant managementcircuitry 943 and UL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 941 shown and described above in reference toFIG. 9 may detect the presence of user data traffic to be transmittedand select one or more of the uplink grants to transmit the user datatraffic to the scheduling entity.

At block 1608, the scheduled entity may select an uplink transmit powerfor each selected uplink grant. In some examples, the open-loop powercontrol configuration for the dynamic uplink grant may be different thanthe open-loop power control configuration for each of the SPS uplinkgrants. In some examples, the open-loop power control configurations foreach SPS uplink grant type may also differ. For example, the UL trafficand control channel generation and transmission circuitry 941 may beconfigured to control a power source 916 shown and described above inreference to FIG. 9 to provide different uplink transmit powers fortransmissions associated with the dedicated SPS uplink grant, thecontention-based SPS uplink grant and/or the dynamic uplink grant. Atblock 1610, the scheduled entity may transmit the user data traffic tothe scheduling entity utilizing the selected uplink grant(s) and theselected uplink transmit power(s) for each of the selected uplinkgrant(s). For example, the UL traffic and control channel generation andtransmission circuitry 941 shown and described above in reference toFIG. 9 may transmit the user data traffic to the scheduling entityutilizing the selected uplink grant(s) via the PUSCH.

Several aspects of a wireless communication network have been presentedwith reference to an exemplary implementation. As those skilled in theart will readily appreciate, various aspects described throughout thisdisclosure may be extended to other telecommunication systems, networkarchitectures and communication standards.

By way of example, various aspects may be implemented within othersystems defined by 3GPP, such as Long-Term Evolution (LTE), the EvolvedPacket System (EPS), the Universal Mobile Telecommunication System(UMTS), and/or the Global System for Mobile (GSM). Various aspects mayalso be extended to systems defined by the 3rd Generation PartnershipProject 2 (3GPP2), such as CDMA2000 and/or Evolution-Data Optimized(EV-DO). Other examples may be implemented within systems employing IEEE802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-Wideband (UWB),Bluetooth, and/or other suitable systems. The actual telecommunicationstandard, network architecture, and/or communication standard employedwill depend on the specific application and the overall designconstraints imposed on the system.

Within the present disclosure, the word “exemplary” is used to mean“serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementationor aspect described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to beconstrued as preferred or advantageous over other aspects of thedisclosure. Likewise, the term “aspects” does not require that allaspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage ormode of operation. The term “coupled” is used herein to refer to thedirect or indirect coupling between two objects. For example, if objectA physically touches object B, and object B touches object C, thenobjects A and C may still be considered coupled to one another—even ifthey do not directly physically touch each other. For instance, a firstobject may be coupled to a second object even though the first object isnever directly physically in contact with the second object. The terms“circuit” and “circuitry” are used broadly, and intended to include bothhardware implementations of electrical devices and conductors that, whenconnected and configured, enable the performance of the functionsdescribed in the present disclosure, without limitation as to the typeof electronic circuits, as well as software implementations ofinformation and instructions that, when executed by a processor, enablethe performance of the functions described in the present disclosure.

One or more of the components, steps, features and/or functionsillustrated in FIGS. 1-16 may be rearranged and/or combined into asingle component, step, feature or function or embodied in severalcomponents, steps, or functions. Additional elements, components, steps,and/or functions may also be added without departing from novel featuresdisclosed herein. The apparatus, devices, and/or components illustratedin FIGS. 1, 2 and/or 6-9 may be configured to perform one or more of themethods, features, or steps described herein. The novel algorithmsdescribed herein may also be efficiently implemented in software and/orembedded in hardware.

It is to be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps inthe methods disclosed is an illustration of exemplary processes. Basedupon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order orhierarchy of steps in the methods may be rearranged. The accompanyingmethod claims present elements of the various steps in a sample order,and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchypresented unless specifically recited therein.

The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in theart to practice the various aspects described herein. Variousmodifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilledin the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied toother aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to theaspects shown herein, but are to be accorded the full scope consistentwith the language of the claims, wherein reference to an element in thesingular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless specificallyso stated, but rather “one or more.” Unless specifically statedotherwise, the term “some” refers to one or more. A phrase referring to“at least one of” a list of items refers to any combination of thoseitems, including single members. As an example, “at least one of: a, b,or c” is intended to cover: a; b; c; a and b; a and c; b and c; and a, band c. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of thevarious aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known orlater come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art areexpressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to beencompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein isintended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether suchdisclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is tobe construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) unless theelement is expressly recited using the phrase “means for” or, in thecase of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase “stepfor.”

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of wireless communication in a wireless communication network for a scheduling entity to communicate with a set of one or more scheduled entities, the method comprising: allocating a first set of resource elements for use by a scheduled entity of the set of one or more scheduled entities in accordance with a first uplink grant of a first type of semi-persistent scheduling; allocating a second set of resource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with a second uplink grant of a second type of semi-persistent scheduling; allocating a third set of resource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with a third uplink grant, wherein the third uplink grant comprises a dynamic scheduling grant; and transmitting scheduling information corresponding to the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant and the third uplink grant to the scheduled entity; wherein the scheduled entity is simultaneously configured with the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant, and the third uplink grant.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first type of semi-persistent scheduling comprises dedicated semi-persistent scheduling and the second type of semi-persistent scheduling comprises contention-based semi-persistent scheduling.
 3. The method of claim 2, further comprising: configuring the scheduled entity with first semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters for the first uplink grant; activating the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity to enable the scheduled entity to utilize the first uplink grant based on the first semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters; configuring the scheduled entity with second semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters for the second uplink grant; and activating the second type of semi-persistent scheduling to enable the scheduled entity to utilize the second uplink grant based on the second semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein: the first semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters comprise at least a first semi-persistent scheduling identifier and a first periodicity of the first uplink grant; the second semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters comprise at least a second semi-persistent scheduling identifier and a second periodicity of the second uplink grant; and the scheduling information comprises the first semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters and the second semi-persistent scheduling configuration parameters.
 5. The method of claim 3, wherein activating the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity is performed substantially simultaneously to activating the second type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduling entity.
 6. The method of claim 3, wherein activating the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity and activating the second type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity are performed at different times.
 7. The method of claim 3, further comprising: releasing the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity to deactivate the first uplink grant; and releasing the second type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity to deactivate the second uplink grant.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein releasing the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity is performed substantially simultaneously to releasing the second type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduling entity.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein releasing the first type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduled entity and releasing the second type of semi-persistent scheduling for the scheduling entity are performed at different times.
 10. The method of claim 2, further comprising: configuring at least one of the first uplink grant or the second uplink grant based on a traffic type of user data traffic to be sent by the scheduled entity.
 11. The method of claim 2, further comprising: configuring at least one of the first uplink grant or the second uplink grant based on a quality of service to be provided to the scheduled entity.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set of resource elements are orthogonal to the second set of resource elements.
 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set of resource elements at least partially overlaps the second set of resource elements in at least one of time or frequency.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting scheduling information corresponding to the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant and the third uplink grant to the scheduled entity further comprises: transmitting a physical downlink control channel comprising separate downlink channel information for each of the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant and the third uplink grant, wherein each of the downlink channel information comprises the respective scheduling information.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling entity comprises a base station and the scheduled entity comprises a user equipment, and further comprising: receiving user data traffic from the user equipment on at least one of the first set of resource elements, the second set of resource elements or the third set of resource elements.
 16. A scheduling entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: a processor; a transceiver communicatively coupled to the processor; and a memory communicatively coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: allocate a first set of resource elements for use by a scheduled entity of a set of one or more scheduled entities in accordance with a first uplink grant of a first type of semi-persistent scheduling; allocate a second set of resource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with a second uplink grant of a second type of semi-persistent scheduling; allocate a third set of resource elements for use by the scheduled entity in accordance with a third uplink grant, wherein the third uplink grant comprises a dynamic scheduling grant; and transmit, via the transceiver, scheduling information corresponding to the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant and the third uplink grant to the scheduled entity; wherein the scheduled entity is simultaneously configured with the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant, and the third uplink grant.
 17. The scheduling entity of claim 16, wherein the first type of semi-persistent scheduling comprises dedicated semi-persistent scheduling and the second type of semi-persistent scheduling comprises contention-based semi-persistent scheduling.
 18. The scheduling entity of claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured to: configure at least one of the first uplink grant or the second uplink grant based on a type of traffic to be sent by the scheduled entity.
 19. The scheduling entity of claim 16, wherein the first set of resource elements are orthogonal to the second set of resource elements.
 20. The scheduling entity of claim 16, wherein the first set of resource elements at least partially overlaps the second set of resource elements in at least one of time or frequency.
 21. The scheduling entity of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to: receive traffic from the scheduled entity on at least one of the first set of resource elements, the second set of resource elements or the third set of resource elements.
 22. A method of wireless communication in a wireless communication network for a scheduled entity to communicate with a scheduling entity, the method comprising: receiving scheduling information corresponding to a first uplink grant, a second uplink grant, and a third uplink grant to simultaneously configure the scheduled entity with the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant, and the third uplink grant, wherein the first uplink grant comprises a first type of semi-persistent scheduling, the second uplink grant comprises a second type of semi-persistent scheduling, and the third uplink grant comprises a dynamic scheduling grant; identifying user data traffic to be transmitted from the scheduled entity to the scheduling entity; selecting one or more selected uplink grants from the first uplink grant, the second uplink, or the third uplink grant for the user data traffic; and transmitting the user data traffic from the scheduled entity to the scheduling entity utilizing the one or more selected uplink grants.
 23. The method of claim 22, wherein the first type of semi-persistent scheduling comprises dedicated semi-persistent scheduling and the second type of semi-persistent scheduling comprises contention-based semi-persistent scheduling.
 24. The method of claim 23, wherein selecting the one or more selected uplink grants further comprises: selecting the one or more selected uplink grants based on a traffic type of the user data traffic.
 25. The method of claim 24, wherein selecting the one or more selected uplink grants further comprises: selecting the first uplink grant as one of the one or more selected uplink grants when the user data traffic comprises periodic traffic; selecting the second uplink grant as one of the one or more selected uplink grants when the user data traffic comprises low-latency traffic or small packet-sized traffic; and selecting the third uplink grant as one of the one or more selected uplink grants when the user data traffic comprises large packet-sized traffic.
 26. The method of claim 23, wherein the first uplink grant comprises a first set of resource elements, the second uplink grant comprises a second set of resource elements, and the third uplink grant comprises a third set of resource elements.
 27. The method of claim 26, wherein selecting the one or more selected uplink grants further comprises: selecting the third uplink grant as one of the one or more selected uplink grants when the third set of resource elements overlaps at least one of the first set of resource elements or the second set of resource elements; selecting the first uplink grant as one of the one or more selected uplink grants when the first set of resource elements overlaps the second set of resource elements and the first set of resource elements does not overlap the third set of resource elements; and selecting the second uplink grant as one of the one or more selected uplink grants when the second set of resource elements does not overlap the first set of resource elements or the third set of resource elements.
 28. The method of claim 26, further comprising: selecting a respective uplink transmit power for each of the one or more selected uplink grants.
 29. A scheduled entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: a processor; a transceiver communicatively coupled to the processor; and a memory communicatively coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: receive scheduling information corresponding to a first uplink grant, a second uplink grant, and a third uplink grant to simultaneously configure the scheduled entity with the first uplink grant, the second uplink grant, and the third uplink grant, wherein the first uplink grant comprises a dedicated semi-persistent scheduling grant, the second uplink grant comprises a contention-based semi-persistent scheduling grant, and the third uplink grant comprises a dynamic scheduling grant; identify user data traffic to be transmitted from the scheduled entity to a scheduling entity; select one or more selected uplink grants from the first uplink grant, the second uplink, or the third uplink grant for the user data traffic; and transmit the user data traffic from the scheduled entity to the scheduling entity via the transceiver utilizing the one or more selected uplink grants.
 30. The scheduled entity of claim 29, wherein the processor is further configured to: select the one or more selected uplink grants based on a traffic type of the user data traffic. 